Chương 143: "Hospitality"

The words had barely left his mouth when, "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh"— A group of people rushed out like arrows released from a bow!

That speed was faster than a military charge!

Guan Yu and Lü Bu had a clear objective and headed straight for the two red steeds.

The two men ran to the horses almost simultaneously, exchanged a glance, and sparks flew in the air—everyone wants a horse, but two tigers cannot share one mountain, and two Red Hare-class steeds cannot share one training ground.

"Yun Chang, this horse..." Lü Bu said.

"Fengxian, let's rely on our own abilities," Guan Yu said in a deep voice.

In the end, each of them led one horse—thankfully there were two, otherwise they would have definitely started fighting.

Zhang Fei set his sights on a horse that was entirely black with snow-white hooves. He pounced on it and hugged its neck, exclaiming, "Hahaha! This horse is mine! From now on, I'll call you 'Black Wind'!"

Dian Wei chose a yellow horse, tall and mighty, which suited him well.

Gao Shun was a man of few words, and he chose a green horse.

Huang Zhong was old, so he chose a steady chestnut horse.

Yu Jin, Zhang He, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou each made their own choices.

Only Zhao Yun, Cheng Yaojin, Yuwen Chengdu, and Luo Cheng remained unmoved—Zhao Yun had the Jade Lion, and Cheng Yaojin, Yuwen Chengdu, and Luo Cheng's horses were all high-quality horses produced by the system, no less impressive than the Ferghana horses.

Liu Ce was so amused by the sight of the generals clinging to their horses that they couldn't bear to let go.

"Look at you all!"

He laughed, "It's like I've married a new bride."

Guan Yu stroked the mane of his crimson steed, clearly admiring it.

"My lord," he asked, "does this horse... have a name?"

"not yet," Liu Ce said, "You can get up yourselves."

Lu Bu spoke first: "My horse is named 'Crimson Flame'!"

Guan Yu, not to be outdone, retorted, "Mine is called 'Fire Dragon'!"

Zhang Fei laughed heartily and said, "My horse is called 'Black Wind,' isn't that nice?"

Dian Wei scratched his head: "My horse... is called 'Big Yellow'!"

The crowd laughed.

Liu Ce laughed and said, "Alright, alright, call them whatever you want. Remember, a fine horse is for a hero. I hope you'll treat them well, and ride them to achieve great things and make a name for yourselves in history!"

Everyone said in unison, "Thank you, our lord! We will certainly live up to your expectations!"

The sound was so loud that the flags on the drill ground shook.

Liu Ce gave a few more instructions about the training, and then prepared to leave.

Liu Ce led the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun back to the city.

On the way, looking at the eighteen silent knights beside him, he suddenly said to Yan Yi, "Are you finding it difficult to stay in Zhuo County?"

Yan Yi clasped his hands in a fist and said, "No, wherever our lord is, that's where we'll be."

Liu Ce patted him on the shoulder: "I'm entrusting you with a glorious mission."

"Please give the order, my lord."

"In a few days, you eighteen riders from Yanyun will go to the border for a stroll."

Liu Ce turned his gaze northward, "Let the Wuhuan and Xianbei people know your power. Let them know what real cavalry is. I want them to be so terrified they can't sleep when they hear the words 'Eighteen Riders of Yanyun'."

Yan was taken aback for a moment, then his eyes flashed with excitement: "Yes! My lord!"

They were warriors born to kill, and staying in the rear was truly stifling. Now, the opportunity to go to the border and fight the enemy was exactly what they wanted.

Guan Yu and the others were still excitedly discussing their newly acquired steed.

Lu Bu had already ridden the Crimson Flame around once, and returned beaming: "What a fine horse! Truly a fine horse!"

Guan Yu also tried riding the fire dragon, feeling its lightning speed, and his heart was filled with heroic spirit.

Zhang Fei, riding his black horse, rampaged across the training ground, frightening the soldiers who scattered in panic. He laughed heartily, "That was exhilarating! Absolutely exhilarating!"

...

Time flew by, and it was October of the first year of the Zhongping era in 184 AD.

That day, Liu Ce was sunbathing in the backyard of the Liu residence—that's right, he had recently become obsessed with "sunbathing," saying it could help him get calcium. Although Cai Yan and the others didn't understand what "calcium supplementation" meant, if their husband said it was good, then it was good.

Dian Wei rushed in: "Brother! Mr. Fang Xuanling requests your presence at the governor's mansion!"

Liu Ce opened his eyes and asked, "What's the rush?"

"I don't know, but it looks quite pleasing."

Liu Ce stood up and dusted off imaginary dust from his clothes: "Let's go take a look."

Liu Ce changed his clothes and went to the governor's mansion. Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui were already waiting for him, with Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao standing beside them.

Both of them smiled when they saw Liu Ce.

"My lord."

Fang Xuanling laughed and said, "General Zhou Cang and General Pei Yuanshao have had a very fruitful trip 'dealing with' those disobedient powerful families."

Liu Ce became interested: "Oh? Duofeng?"

Du Ruhui handed over an account book: "Over one million shi of grain and dozens of chests of gold and silver. It seems these powerful families are quite 'hospitable'."

Zhou Cang chuckled: "My lord, you don't know how 'enthusiastic' those powerful local lords were. As soon as we arrived, they offered us grain and treasures, saying it was to 'comfort the soldiers.'"

Pei Yuanshao added, "As instructed by our lord, we went to 'visit' those who were disobedient. They were very 'enthusiastic' and insisted on giving us grain, fodder, gold, and silver. We couldn't refuse, so we had to accept them. They were a little reluctant to part with them and cried quite sadly. However, we are reasonable people and only took what we were entitled to, without harming anyone."

Liu Ce flipped through the account books, becoming more and more amused: "Truly 'hospitable.' It seems that the powerful and wealthy families of Youzhou are all 'charitable' and benevolent."

With over one million shi of grain, plus the two million shi given by the Zhen family, and the over one million shi of grain inherited from the Yellow Turbans, Youzhou now has more than four million shi of grain in storage!

There's also gold and silver treasure, which, if converted to money, would amount to hundreds of millions.

These powerful and influential families, who usually prey on the local people and hoard goods for profit, have now been robbed by the "remnants of the Yellow Turbans" and can only swallow their anger. They can't very well report to the authorities that "the Yellow Turbans robbed me," because that would be tantamount to admitting that they were colluding with the Yellow Turbans.

This tactic is underhanded, but effective.

"Well done."

Liu Ce patted Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao on the shoulders, "Go back and get some rest, you'll be rewarded."

The two left happily.

Fang Xuanling continued, "My lord, the people we sent to various prefectures have completely grasped the situation. They are now implementing new policies: surveying and measuring land, redistributing land, and providing work relief... all progressing smoothly."

Liu Ce nodded: "Very good. Tell the prefects of each prefecture to go ahead and do it. I'll take responsibility if anything goes wrong."

He then asked, "Where are the carpenter and blacksmith I requested?"

We've arrived in Zhuoxian.

Fang Xuanling said, "The best carpenter is surnamed Wang, and the best blacksmith is surnamed Li; both are family-inherited skills. We've also brought over some iron ore and graphite (coal).

Liu Ce's eyes lit up: "Great! Thank you for your hard work."

Liu Ce was in high spirits as he left the governor's mansion.

We have the food supplies, the personnel, and the raw materials.

Next, we can do something big.